elvisdo's Full Review: Jim Starlin - Batman: Ten Nights of the Beast
Jason Todd never had a chance.
He was a kid who grew as an orphan in the streets of Gotham City. Batman encounters him when he finds Jason attempting to steal the wheels off the Batmobile. Batman figures he can save this boy from a hard life, but eventually he finds himself dead at the hands of the Joker.
Under any other circumstances, Jason would just be another victim in the long list of bodies that the Joker has left behind. So what’s the big fuss about this little rugrat? In between his first encounter with Batman to his demise by the Joker, Jason Todd was known as Robin, the Boy Wonder. Before you even ask, Jason was the second person to wear the mantle of Robin.
Batman: A Death in the Family collects the 4-issues of Batman #426-429 to this 1988 controversial storyline by writer Jim Starlin and artist Jim Aparo that rocked the world of Batman.
Batman’s Greatest Failure
Jason Todd learns that his biological mother might still be alive and the second Robin uses his detective skills to find her. He narrows it down to three women, one of whom happens to be the deadliest martial artist in the world, Lady Shiva. His journey takes him throughout the Middle East where he also encounters the Joker. Unfortunately for Jason Todd, the Clown Prince of Crime made sure it was the last time.
The killing of Robin garnered massive media attention, as many people believed that it was the original Robin, Dick Grayson, who was getting the axe. This stunt was even more prominent when it was announced that the fans would have a say on whether Jason Todd would live or die by dialing a 1-900 to cast their vote. Surprisingly, the result was closer than anticipating with only 72 votes separating life and death.
So why was such a decision to get rid of Robin even made in the first place? There were many reasons involved in making this death a reality.
In the days before Crisis On Infinite Earths, Dick Grayson gave up his mantle of Robin and Batman’s sidekick to take on the identity of Nightwing. It was his way of stating that he was his own man and didn’t need to be in Batman’s shadow anymore. Plus, Dick also grew up to be a young adult and having him run around in short pants and pixie boots became a hindrance to his development. As Robin he would always be associated as the other half of “Batman and…” Since Dick was now an adult and Robin was to appeal to the younger kids, it was only a matter of time before a replacement was found.
The problem was that DC Comics was afraid that readers wouldn’t take likely to a new Robin. What they tried to do his to make this transition as painless as possible by having Jason Todd’s origin similar to Dick Grayson’s. Jason also came from a circus family of acrobats whose parents were murdered by Killer Croc. Bruce Wayne adopts him and trains him to become the new Robin. They only real cosmetic change was Jason’s hair colour which was originally red, but he later dyed it black. This version of Jason was actually likeable, just like Dick Grayson was in his youth.
Post-Crisis saw a change in Jason’s origin. Instead of coming from a circus family, he was a street orphan trying to survive in the mean streets of Gotham. He was hardened and jaded by this experience before he met Batman, who takes it upon himself to take Jason in and channel his rage as a crimefighter. Otherwise, Batman deduces that Jason would eventually grow up to become part of the criminal element.
But Jason was reckless, impulsive, defiant, and extremely hard-headed. Even worse, the fans never took to this version of Robin. DC took note of this and decided to do something about it. Batman’s 50th anniversary was approaching in 1989 and DC wanted to return Batman to his solo roots. That’s when the whole campaign to kill Jason Todd came about in 1988, and the result had a lasting effect for Batman stories to come ever since.
The Fallout
Dennis O’Neil was the editor of the Batman books at the time. He didn’t have a problem with killing Robin stating that it would make for a good story. He later conceded that he might have made a mistake as he realized that these characters were more important than he realized. The epiphany that he had made him understand that he was just the caretaker to these characters who were now larger than life. His approach to how they were treated was transformed from that moment.
Starlin scripted the 4-part story to great success, though I felt there were a lot of things that didn’t make sense or were left up in the air. One of the plot lines had the Joker become the ambassador to Iran, which meant he had diplomatic immunity in the States. That alone should have been a story idea for another time and could have been played up to a great effect, like Lex Luthor’s reign as the President of the United States. It was a bold move that wasn’t taken to the next level.
Aparo’s art was fantastic and having Mike DeCarlo ink over his work gave it a sleeker style than usual. Aparo is one of the most underrated artists of his time, but is remembered as one of the perennial Batman artists ever. There was a page that he drew of Robin living if the vote went that way. It hasn’t seen the light of day until recently.
The overall story was average at best, but the repercussions from it showed the more fragile state of Batman. It’s this one moment in history that his road to a more hardened, cold, and aloof crimefighter was born. Batman without a Robin had dire consequences that the Dark Knight was becoming more brutal in the way he dealt with criminals. It was the absence of Robin that it was finally realized that Batman needed a light to guide his actions, and surprisingly it came in the form of pixie boots.
Product Details: ISBN: 0930289447
Format: Paperback, 144pp
Pub. Date: December 1995
Publisher: DC Comics
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